Simms to get once-over

Report has Rattay on the radar, too

Patriots cornerback Ellis Hobbs can only watch as the potential tying touchdown deflects off the hands of Chiefs receiver Dwayne Bowe. (John Bohn/Globe Staff)

FOXBOROUGH - The quarterback hunt is on for the Patriots, who are staring at a season without quarterback Tom Brady in the face.

The team, which likely lost Brady for the season to a serious left knee injury suffered in yesterday's 17-10 season-opening win over the Chiefs, is scheduled to bring in free agent Chris Simms today for a physical and workout. Simms, the son of former Giants QB Phil Simms, whom Patriots coach Bill Belichick is familiar with from his days as Giants defensive coordinator, was cut by the Buccaneers Aug. 30.

A league source confirmed the visit and said the Chiefs, whose starter, Brodie Croyle, sustained a shoulder injury against the Patriots, and the Titans, who had Vince Young on crutches after he sprained his left knee in the Titans' 17-10 win over the Jaguars, also are interested in Simms.

Chris Mortensen of ESPN reported last night the Patriots also are going to bring in free agent Tim Rattay.

Simms, a 28-year-old lefthander, entered the league in 2003 as a third-round pick of the Bucs. In 19 career games (15 starts), Simms has completed 291 of 492 passes (59.1 percent) for 3,087 yards and 12 touchdowns with 17 interceptions.

He led the Buccaneers to the NFC South title in 2005, when he played in 11 games (10 starts) and completed 191 of 313 passes (61 percent) for 2,035 yards and 10 touchdowns with 7 interceptions. But Simms suffered a ruptured spleen against the Panthers in the third game of the 2006 season, and had to have his spleen removed. Simms missed the entire 2007 season while he recovered from the injury and was part of a glut of quarterbacks on Tampa Bay's roster during the preseason.

He played against the Patriots during the exhibition season in a 27-10 Tampa win, and was 2 of 4 for 24 yards.

Since Simms would have to learn the Patriots system on the fly, one probably wouldn't consider him an upgrade over Matt Cassel, who relieved Brady yesterday and led the Patriots to victory. However, Simms could be insurance should something happen to Cassel, since only rookie Kevin O'Connell is currently behind Cassel on the depth chart.

O'Neal up to speed

It didn't take long for the Patriots signing of veteran cornerback Deltha O'Neal to pay dividends.

O'Neal came up with a dramatic touchdown-saving tackle yesterday. Late in the fourth quarter with the Patriots clinging to a 17-10 lead, Damon Huard hit a wide open Devard Darling in stride on second and 16 from the Chiefs' 27. Darling appeared to be in the express lane to the end zone before O'Neal caught him from behind at the 5 with 53 seconds left.

What was going through O'Neal's mind as he chased down Darling?

"Get him down. I don't want to go to overtime," said O'Neal, with a grin. "I don't want to do this overtime stuff. I just hauled [butt] and caught up to him."

O'Neal's tackle set up a goal line stand that sealed the game. On KC's last-ditch pass, intended for Dwayne Bowe in the end zone, O'Neal had tight coverage - and maybe a little contact - but he got the job done.

That capped a whirlwind week for O'Neal, a nine-year veteran who was released by the Cincinnati Bengals Aug. 30 and landed with the Patriots a week ago.

"It was crazy," said O'Neal, who also returned two punts for 2 yards. "It felt good to be a part of this team and do something good. Even if I just made one play or no plays, it just felt good that we performed well."

The Patriots elected to go with O'Neal and veteran Lewis Sanders, who drew the start at left corner, over rookies Terrence Wheatley and Jonathan Wilhite, who both received scant playing time. Safety Rodney Harrison said he respected O'Neal's ability to make an immediate impact.

"That's the reason why we went out and got Deltha," said Harrison. "He's a proven guy, Pro Bowler, can play, veteran guy. He's been around. He's made a lot of interceptions. He's made a lot of big plays, and he's a guy that came in and learned the system really fast and asked a bunch of questions. And he's a good person. I'm excited for Deltha, and I'm excited to build on that and see him out there more."

Makeup man

Cornerback Ellis Hobbs waited until the 16th game last season to come up with an interception. He got his INT out of the way much earlier this year.

Hobbs picked off a Huard pass intended for Bowe at the Kansas City 41 with 7:21 left in the game to set up a Stephen Gostkowski field goal.

Hobbs, who also came up with a fourth-quarter sack, was motivated to make plays after he surrendered a 13-yard touchdown reception to Bowe with 13:06 left in the fourth quarter. He immediately responded with a 51-yard return on the ensuing kickoff and then intercepted Huard a little later.

"Right after that pick, I went and handed the ball to Bill [Belichick], saying, 'I owed you one,' " said Hobbs. "Any time I make a negative play out there I'm not going to shy away from it. It's my mistake. I told the guys, whatever. But even before this year, any time I go out there and do something negative I'm trying to make up for it."

As a sign of Hobbs's growth, his interception came on a skinny post, the same play on which Bowe had beaten him for the TD.

"I just knew if you have success with a play why not come back to it?" said Hobbs. "I was hoping they'd come back to it, and I just broke on the route and made the play."

Faulk set to return

Patriots running back Kevin Faulk, who was suspended for the season opener for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy during the offseason, is eligible to return today.

The Patriots received a roster exemption for Faulk, allowing them to carry 54 players yesterday, but will have to make a move to reactivate him from the reserve/suspended list.

In Faulk's absence, Sammy Morris was the primary receiving back, catching five passes for 34 yards.

Business booming

Chris Hanson's 70-yard punt in the second quarter was the longest for the Patriots since 2001 and his longest since 2005. Lee Johnson had a 76-yarder for the Patriots in the 2001 season opener against the Bengals. Hanson averaged 50.5 yards on four punts, but twice booted the ball into the end zone for touchbacks . . . Wide receiver Kelley Washington, who didn't catch a pass all of last season, recorded his first reception as a Patriot, hauling in a 3-yard pass from Cassel in the second quarter . . . Undrafted rookie linebacker Gary Guyton made his NFL debut. He entered at inside linebacker in the second quarter but was not credited with a tackle . . . Tight end Benjamin Watson (knee) was among the eight listed as inactives by the Patriots. He was replaced in the starting lineup by David Thomas, who had two catches for 24 yards. Wide receiver Sam Aiken (knee), center Dan Connolly (knee), and defensive lineman Le Kevin Smith (groin) were also out. Rookie outside linebacker Shawn Crable, reserve tackle Wesley Britt, and wide receiver C.J. Jones were healthy scratches.

Hodges booted

The Patriots released practice squad punter Reggie Hodges. The team is scheduled to host former Southern California punter Tom Malone on a tryout today . . . The team unveiled a white banner in the north side of the stadium to commemorate its 16-0 regular season. It has the team's name in blue followed by "16-0" in bright red, with "Regular Season Record" underneath that in navy blue and "2007" below that in the same color. Just as a point of reference, the team's three Super Bowl banners are located diagonally across the stadium on the south side . . . In honor of late NFL Players Association director Gene Upshaw, who died of cancer at age 63 on Aug. 20, there was a large black circle with his initials, "GU" and his number from his days with the Oakland Raiders, 63, at the 50-yard line in front of the Patriots sideline. All teams will wear a patch with the same symbol this season . . . The Patriots wore white jerseys at home for the first time since Oct. 2, 1994, when they wore throwback jerseys in a 17-16 win over the Green Bay Packers . . . Before the game, more than 60 members of the Army National Guard participated in a re-enlistment ceremony on the field.

Christopher L. Gasper can be reached at cgasper@globe.com. Mike Reiss of the Globe staff contributed to this report.